The Message
by Babybrowns
Summary: She loved him once, but he vanished from her life before she could tell him. She buried her feelings long ago and found someone else. Three years later, and newly single, Sakura receives a message from that same past love. Why, after all this time has passed, does Sasuke choose to contact her and try to get back in her life? Maybe he will finally fulfill his promise from then...


**What? A new Sasuke and Sakura fic? Yup. New Year's Day I had the biggest need to write, so I came up with this on a whim. It is just the start of an idea, but I have a good idea where I want to take this one. I hope I haven't lost my touch!**

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There she lay, stretched out on her bed with the last of the evening sun casting onto her face. Her tears glinted in the sunlight, though she quickly wiped them away in frustration.

_How much longer will this go on for…?_

Her jade eyes shifted to look out the window, vision blurred to watch the last of the sun fade into the horizon. As she blinked, more warm tears streamed down her face. Again, she wiped them away, trying to ignore the terrible ache in her chest. But she couldn't let go of the pain; not this soon. He was the face forever remaining in her fondest memories.

Sakura let more tears fall, clenching her hands to her chest and scrunching her form into a ball. "How could you do this to me…"

Just as she was about to have another break down, her phone buzzed. It had been set on the glass top night stand next to her bed, so it vibrated quite loudly. Sakura reached up to her cell phone and pressed the top button, which made the screen light up. Unfortunately, she had yet to change her phone background, only making her eyes immediately well up with tears. It was a picture of Sakura and her now former lover.

"Kai…" The picture was of him sweetly kissing her on the forehead, underneath an autumn tree. It had been taken by Sakura's mother when she still lived at home. This particular picture was only about two months old, and it was supposed to be another fond memory. But seeing this picture turned her sorrow into anger.

"…You cheating bastard!" Sakura clenched the phone into her hand, winded back her arm, and then let it fly forward out of her fingers into her nearby lounging chair. She had hoped to throw it into the wall and watch it break into a few pieces, but Kai's recent actions had nothing to do with her phone.

After taking a moment to calm down and fight the pain, Sakura sat up in her bed, letting her feet touch the carpeted floor. Her green eyes dropped onto her left hand, which lay atop her soft comforter. The Haruno then sighed, beginning to start off and think out loud to herself. "Three years of my young adult life, wasted." She shook her head in self-pity, trying to think of something else besides her heartache.

"Just think of some other men you could have potentially dated, Sakura." Her thoughts about the past began to amuse her, thinking of the brief male encounters she had before Kai. Sakura had let loose the last two years of high school to have her fun. She had her hook ups, her crushes, and her let downs. She recalled gossiping with Ino and a few others, or talking about their latest male interest. Sakura remembered giving up her virginity to a complete asshole, and the guy she hooked up with at a party. By no means would Sakura call herself a whore; she had private, intimate relations with very few males, and most of them it was only once.

She continued to stare off into space as her cell phone buzzed quietly now from the lounger. The moon was starting to rise into the night sky, its light glowing against her wall. Her thoughts shifted to the time her and Suigetsu had their one, slightly awkward encounter. She also remembered the time her and Naruto tried to date, but it never really blossomed into a relationship because they had been friends for so long. The Haruno was also lucky enough to share a brief, romantic fling with her crush, but that never really worked out either. For whatever reason, she just never felt that real spark of love; the chemistry was just off. Her feelings never stuck for any of them.

Well, almost all of them.

Sakura lifted her head and turned it toward the window. A smirk came to her lips as she looked at it, remembering nights she would sneak out of her bedroom window. Her body felt warm as she recalled the male she used to do that for. Goose bumps formed on her skin, crawling up her neck as she thought about the first time they kissed. There had been such an intense spark and a burning need inside of her when she was with him.

Sakura closed her eyes and imagined staring into his onyx ones. The glint he would get in them before he would push her into a wall and kiss her roughly made her tingle. Everything he did to her back then was so passionate and hot. Sakura could practically feel his thick, soft tough of dark hair between her fingers as she recalled the way she would run her hands through it. She could feel her face burning from the thought of the nights she moaned his name. "Sasuke…"

She was freshly 17 when they had met, their attraction immediate. She met him through Karin, a now distant friend of hers. Karin, Sakura, and Naruto with a few of the guys went to drop in football after school where Sasuke and some of his buddies were playing.

The rosette smiled to herself, thinking of that red car of his and the fun they had in it. Yes, Sasuke was the one male that she started to develop some kind of real feeling for. She could see something in him, and he reciprocated those feelings back. The Uchiha kept telling her that things were complicated and he just couldn't have a serious relationship yet. For two months they were well acquainted and enjoying one another. And then…

Sakura could feel the biting pain at her chest again, remembering the pain of how it ended. She had cried many tears because of Sasuke and his sudden disappearance from her life. One day, Sasuke had just completely withdrawn. It was like something had died inside of him, and no matter how much Sakura tried to comfort him and understand what was wrong, he just moved farther away. Over the next two months, he would send her a random text or ask to hook up, and like a fool, Sakura agreed. She agreed because, back then, she thought his interest would spark back up for her if they had sex. About a month after they had completely cut ties, he started dating another girl. It had hurt Sakura since he promised to date her and then picked up some random girl who she had never heard of. She eventually buried her thoughts of Sasuke and met Kai not too much later after that.

And here she was, three years later, now newly single. "What am I going to do?" Sakura was so used to being in a serious relationship; always having someone there who she loved and to comfort her. She felt like she had been thrown outside in the cold, left to figure things out on her own. The world just felt so lonely…

Then it hit her. Sakura had the sudden urge to get on her laptop and find some answers. It had been just over three years since she heard from any of her past flings. The ones she was still on decent terms with she had as a friend on Facebook. But she could not remember for the life of her if she were still friends with Sasuke or not.

She pulled up the website and got ready to type his name in, only to see she had a message in her inbox. "What? Who would message…?" As she drifted off, her phone buzzed again to remind her of the message. Sakura got up off her bed and grabbed the cell, touching the screen as she sat back down in front of her laptop. She clicked on her phone to see the notification pop up. It said she had a message on Facebook. "Damn notifications…"

Sakura shifted her attention to the laptop and clicked on the red message sign. From there popped up the name of the person and the text within this person's message. Her green eyes grew wide as she realized who had messaged her. "Sasuke Uchiha?!" Sakura couldn't believe at the impeccable timing of this man. "Of all the times in my life he could contact me, he chooses today…"

Could something like this really be coincidence? Did Sasuke want to talk to her because he knew about her split with Kai? Or maybe something happened in his life to make him want to contact her after all this time? As for the contents of the message, there was only one word to it.

_**Hey.**_

All he could think to say to her is 'hey'? Sakura decided not to reply yet, but to click on his face so she could go to his page. It let her see his information right away – they had been friends this whole time and she didn't even remember. "Goes to show how much I thought of him…"

Sakura began to creep through his posts, but it didn't take much scrolling before she hit something significant. On his page, dated just a few days ago, it said Sasuke was now single.

"Oh my fucking god…" Sakura said out loud to herself in disbelief, "…I don't believe this…"

The Haruno leaned back against her bed's headboard, staring at his 'single' dating status. He had been solid dating her for almost four years, Sakura in her own relationship for three years, and they both have become single in the same week. Was it some kind of sign? Sasuke messaged her after all, and it had been so long since they talked.

Sakura had grown, matured and changed plenty over the last three years. She found a backbone and was bold and confident. She had truly blossomed in her years with Kai, now freshly 21 years old. She was in the middle of her college education, living on her own near campus.

Sakura reflected on these thoughts, and began to see light of her heartbreak. "I'm 21 and single…" She clicked back onto her message box and pulled up the message from Sasuke. She clicked on the text box, ready to type. "It's time I start having some fun again." Sakura hit send after her brief reply, grinning. Even if she only said hi back and asked him what's up, it was still the start of communicating with Sasuke after all these years. She was getting herself excited in a way. She had changed so much and was excited at the thought of seeing him and blowing him away. Sakura never did get closure for what he did to her; she never found out why he just lost interest in her. To why he started dating that other girl and crushed her heart…

Oh, she was going to blow his mind alright. The Haruno wanted him to see what he had missed out on. She wanted him to be sorry for what he did and beg for her back. She wanted revenge for the feeling he had left her with; all the sorrow he put her though. Sakura doubted that would actually happen, but if she could at least get back in contact with Sasuke, maybe she could get that chance with him that she never had.

She never told him, but Sakura knew that, back then, she loved the Uchiha. She wanted to tell him, though not soon after is when he seemed to just vanish. Of course, there was no way she could love Sasuke after all this time, let alone trust him for breaking her heart. While she liked the idea of getting that chance to date him, would she be able to find it in her heart to do so? If they ever did get into that scenario where he asked her to be his, could she say yes?

A light beep sounded out from the laptop, taking Sakura out of her thoughts and back to her laptop. The sound was from the messenger, letting her know that she got a reply. "That was quick," she thought out loud. Her eyes scanned the few words that he wrote back with. _**Nothing much going on. How have you been?**_

She decided the best thing to do was to be honest, and maybe a little forward. Feeling the twinge in her heart, she replied, _**Not doing so well. Dealing with my recent split…**_

Within the minute, he replied back, _**I'm sorry. I'm going through the same thing…**_

Sakura sat back for a moment, taking in what was going on. She was starting to casually talk to her old flame, Sasuke. Over the years, she had had a few dreams about him. In one dream, she was chasing a butterfly and saw Sasuke from the corner of her eye. Before she could catch the butterfly, Sasuke pulled up next to her and said hello. Before she could respond to him, she woke up. What she was doing now reminded her of that very dream, so it just felt so unreal to her. Sakura never had this kind of coincidence happen to her before.

The same notification noise sounded, indicating he sent her another message. _I didn't even reply yet and he said something else. Is he…eager to talk to me or something?_

The rosette read his next message, and her heart began to soften. _**Sakura, I'm here for you if you want to talk about it.**_

"It has to be…" Her eyes widened, heart rate increasing. She could feel her heart beating into her ear since it was pounding so loudly.

_**Thanks Sasuke. I'm here for you too.**_

Her cheeks were a rosy red color from blushing, face burning slightly from the heat. She could feel something stirring inside her stomach, making her feel light. Those feelings of hers were starting to surface again; the ones she buried long ago. _Am I really getting butterflies? Am I…nervous?_

Her green eyes were still looking at his messages when his reply popped up. And this one really got her stomach to kick up. _**I know this is soon, but would you consider hanging out sometime?**_

Sakura didn't have to think twice when she wrote back to him. _**I wouldn't be opposed to it…**_

The Haruno wasn't even given a minute to process what he proposed. "He already wants to see me again!" Sakura fist pumped, trying to hide her forming grin. This was exciting her and truly making her day. Here she was, at the end of her weekend, which she spent most of crying because of Kai. Now that cheating bastard was in the back of her mind with glowing happiness to replace it. She forgot what it was like to talk to other guys and planning to hang out, let alone one who was a past love interest. By no means did she want to get serious with any man for a while, but going on a few casual dates or having hook-ups wouldn't hurt.

"Actually…" Sakura began thinking, "…What if I could just have casual sex with Sasuke…?" She started to think of those strong arms of his and how he could hold her pinned up against a wall, kissing her roughly…

However, these were just some possibilities she came up with. Maybe she could just be friends with him? Or perhaps she would be able to let go of all the pain and trust him again, possibly gaining his love? Or maybe Sakura won't have the heart to do anything at all, just like she was never able to tell him how she really felt back then. Yet again, maybe he changed into a total asshole and she might not want anything to do with him. But from his profile picture, he was even more attractive then she remembered last. If she were bold enough, the least she could do is hook up a few times and move on to the next part of her life. Sakura had no idea what she wanted to do yet or even how she really felt. She did know how she felt now; she was elated. Maybe this would work out like a fairytale, like she had always fantasized. Like two past lovers being separated, and then, years later, they run back into one another and fall right back in love.

Sakura's head came out of the clouds when her messenger made the beeping noise. Sasuke had written back. _**If you aren't busy, we can catch up tomorrow night. **_He had sent another message, its contents being his cell phone number. She gave a quick gasp, freaking out for a moment.

"Oh my god oh my god…he gave me his number!" Realizing she was getting a bit too excited, she composed herself, entering his number into his phone. She popped him a quick message saying she would text him, and then shut her laptop, placing it under her bed. Sakura let herself fall back onto her bed, sending Sasuke a text. _**I can't do anything tomorrow, but maybe Friday after work?**_

It only took a minute for him to reply, and it took her by surprise. _**You can't do anything sooner? **_Wow, he was eager alright. Truthfully, she really couldn't do anything until then because she was behind on some college work and also had a job.

Seeing him eager though made her smirk; he really wanted to see her, and she had control over it. Being playful, Sakura text him back, _**Let me see what I can do, but no promises. Why are you so eager, Sasuke?**_

Again, he responded almost immediately, and she was looking forward to this answer. _**It's just been a while. It'd be nice to see you again.**_

The only logical explanation that kept popping into Sakura's head was that he wanted to rekindle that old flame of theirs. She wanted to respond, though no thoughts came to mind. She just stared at the message, scanning it a few more times to make sure this was happening. If it wasn't for him messaging her off of his personal Facebook account, she would probably question if it was really him even texting her.

The Haruno flipped back through the few text messages sent by Sasuke, her heart fluttering at every word she read. _This is just so unreal…so euphoric. _The faint smile stayed on her lips, and once again she decided to tell him what was really on her mind.

_**Are you really serious? This isn't some joke?**_

His reply only took a minute or so, but it felt like ten to Sakura. _**Yes, I am very serious. You don't trust me?**_

As soon as she read the last part, she let out a disbelieving laugh. "Ha! Trust you…" That was one feeling that might never change. After he left her hanging like he did, he lost every ounce of her trust. In a mocking voice, she repeated a line he had said to her years before. "Sakura, I promise we'll date, but I have some things to take care of first." Scoffing, she added in her own thoughts, "Yeah, date. That's fucking hilarious."

As her thoughts rolled on, the anger simmered down into sorrow. "Then you left me without a word, fucked me few times, and then…dated that girl…"

Sakura realized she never replied back. She decided telling him what she had just thought was a bad idea, and instead sent a simple reply. _**No, not after what you did…**_

She felt nervous as she sent it, like there was a lump in her throat. Sasuke could blow up on her and ask her what the hell she meant by that. She would completely blow her chance of ever seeing him. Sakura could only hope that he wouldn't be upset, or, in a perfect world, actually be sympathetic. Maybe he would finally apologize…

_**That's actually part of why I wanted to see you.**_

The rosette's chest began thumping loudly;, her face heating up and brining redness to her cheeks. Everything she could have ever asked for was actually happening. Sasuke being single again, maybe realizing he made a mistake dating Hana and should have been with Sakura, like he promised. Or perhaps he missed Sakura and had been thinking about her and the shit he had pulled; how selfish and hurtful it had been. The Haruno had blossomed over the last few years, so maybe Sasuke had matured over the years and started acting like a true adult.

But there was something else about the text that caught her attention. She wrote back to him, _**Wait, part of? What's the other reason?**_

_**I would like to have this conversation in person. You deserve better than text message talk after all these years.**_

"I hate it when you say things like that…" She mumbled this to herself, though also blushing and feeling somewhat embarrassed. Obviously she wasn't going to get her answers unless they met up. But he did take her by surprise due to his fondness. There must have been some kind of guilt or something bothering him to say something like that. People liked to have serious, meaning conversations in person. It was very personal and respectful.

Sakura smiled through the flattering words, deciding she could wait to see Sasuke before the past was brought up. If she was really going to hear a heartfelt apology from him this week, there was no need to rush it. _**You're right…we should wait until we meet up. **_Sakura hit the send button, lying her phone down next to her for a moment. She sat up and then shifted her eyes to her desk. That's when she saw the fat text book sitting there open, also with a few papers atop.

"Oh…" It hit her that she had a paper to type up and turn in for class tomorrow. Tonight was her only time to do it. As she quickly got up off of her bed, she continued her thought, "…Shit!"

Frustrated, she picked up the papers and began glancing over them until she found the one she needed. "Fuck! What time is it?!" Sakura dove back to her bed, grabbing the laptop from the floor and also her cell phone, pressing the home button to see the time. "Dammit!" It was nine at night, which was quite late by her schedule. Sakura worked at eight in the morning most days, which required her to get up quite early, therefore going to sleep by eleven at the latest.

Sakura started to move her books around to make room for her laptop, but then feel phone buzzing in her hand. She set her laptop down and pulled out the swivel chair as she glanced at her phone. _**How have you been doing, besides Kai?**_

As she sat down, she sighed. God, she wanted to start a conversation with him so badly! She wanted to tell him everything just like she used to. To discuss college, her accomplishments, and even chat about random things. Just any kind of conversation would suffice. But of all the nights, she just couldn't this time. School always came first to her, even if it meant putting one of her biggest wishes on hold.

Frowning, the Haruno replied back. _**I would love to talk Sasuke, but I really need to get this paper done tonight.**_

"Sasuke…" She loved saying his name and the way it sounded. It was alluring and powerful. It was a name she hadn't said in a long time, and it felt good to say it without that sting in her chest. Already, the pain was fading.

_**It's alright, I understand. Just text me if you want.**_

_**Thank you. I'll talk to you later.**_

Sakura figured he wouldn't be replying this time, so she set her phone down on the desk. She opened up the laptop, fingers tapping the keys to put in her password. Once logged on, she pulled up her word program and glanced at her paper, reading over the assignment guidelines. But as much as she tried to focus, the jade eyed girl kept glancing at her phone, hoping it would light up from another text from him. She had said she had a paper to do, but the temptation was still there to put it off for a little longer. Yet again, this is probably what the Uchiha needed. Maybe she needed to back off and let him come to her, opposed to throwing herself at him and ruining her chances.

Sakura reassured herself, looking back at her assignment paper. "Sakura, if he's really serious, he'll be texting you soon enough. Now focus!"

Just as she went to start typing, her phone buzzed. She nearly squealed as she picked up her phone and quickly opened the text. Surely enough, it was Sasuke.

_**Sakura…**_

Oh, this meant something serious didn't it? Could he be so eager he just couldn't keep to his own word? Sakura typed back, keeping it short as well.

_**Yes…?**_

For a minute she left her phone in her hand, expecting him to say something right away. But after a few more, the rosette began to doubt he would reply. Trying not to get upset, she began working on her paper. Luckily it only had to be two pages long, and it was also a relatively straightforward assignment. If she stayed on track, perhaps she wouldn't have to lose any sleep tonight. It must have been almost ten minutes before her phone buzzed again, which also surprised her. _Maybe he was just sending a long text…?_

Sakura picked up her phone, expecting several pages to read from Sasuke. To her disappointment though, there was only a few words. Sasuke never had been a man of many words to begin with…

_**It's nothing. Good night.**_

She typed back a simple good night, placing her phone down for the last time. Who knows why he took so long to say so few words? And why did he say it's nothing? That's similar to say 'oh, nevermind.' Maybe he wanted to say something but just couldn't make himself do it?

Sakura wanted to concentrate on her paper, but she kept thinking about it, fully aware that she wasn't going to find the answer. It didn't matter though; her night was going to consist of making up scenarios in her head of where they would meet and what they would say.

The rosette glanced at her computer for a moment.

"You aren't due until midnight tomorrow..."

With that, Sakura shut her laptop and retracted back to her fond thoughts of Sasuke.


End file.
